The Golden Coast

"The Golden Coast " 12 x 16, watercolor on arches

Every once in a while, framing happens before I get a good photograph of a painting, so I am posting a framed painting to show what the final product usually looks like. I apologize for the glare, but that is the nature of point and shoot photography and plexiglass.

My framing uses a different way of matting. I like to use a white liner and a neutral tan or gray matt. It makes the paintings look fresher to me.

This was painted from another painting of the coast near Carmel. I wanted to explore gold and turquoise colors and see how far I could push them. I love the Pacific Coast, so this is a personal favorite, it reminds me of being on vacation.

California Art Club Artist Membership

Last October, the call for applications went out for Artist Membership in the California Art Club. I have been an associate artist member for a few years and I am pleased to announce that I have just been selected as one of approximately 20 new Artist Members out of hundreds who applied. Membership is limited to 350 Painters and Sculptors working in traditional art in California.
This means a lot to me because I have a strong attachment to the art of one of the founders : William Wendt . He was an amazing landscape painter whose way of seeing the landscape as shapes has really inspired me. Coincidentally, he and I share a birthday, February 20th! What are the odds?(Well actually 1 in 365!)
The academic side of being an artist has always been important to me, studying the past so I can learn from it. I have an east coast art and art history education, so when I discovered all the wonderful California landscape painters from the turn of the century , it led me to the contemporary practitioners of traditional painting.
A traveling exhibit from the Irvine Museum to the Oakland Museum was a revelation. On the east coast, just before moving to California, I began exhibiting at the Copley Society of Boston, which to me is the east coast equivalent of this Club.
My friend and artist I admire deeply Carolyn Lord is an Artist Member and has encouraged me to join this group. If you go to the California art club web site and look at the members' work , it is like an education of what realistic painting should be. Mature artists with distinct styles and compelling visions .

Here is the History on the club from the web site:
THE HISTORY OF THE CALIFORNIA ART CLUB The California Art Club (CAC) was established in 1909 by the early California Impressionists or Plein Air Painters, and was developed from the Painter's Club of Los Angeles, which was founded in 1906 as an informal group of male artists. A significant impetus that helped form the California Art Club was the objective to allow women artists to participate in group exhibitions and in fellowship. Instrumental in the founding of the CAC were the artists, Franz Bischoff (1864-1929), Carl Oscar Borg (1879-1947), Hanson Puthuff (1875-1972) and William Wendt (1865-1946) , whose wife Julia Bracken Wendt (1871-1942) was a sculptor of high merit.
William Wendt (1865 - 1946)2nd (1911-1914) and 4th (1917-1918) CAC President
Under the leadership of William Wendt, who served as president for six years, the California Art Club quickly became a powerful and prestigious institution that was recognized as a cultural authority on the west coast.
Here is the mission Statement(again courtesy of the web site)
The California Art Club's primary purposes are to promote the fine arts in the fields of painting, drawing and sculpture referred to as traditional and representational art, with a special emphasis placed on the academic traditions and craftsmanship established by the founders of the corporation; to produce and promote art exhibits that foster understanding and interpretation of the traditional art heritage; and to furnish educational opportunities in the fine arts. Additionally, the corporation may engage in any activities that are reasonably related to or in furtherance of its stated charitable and public purposes, or in any other charitable activities.

Here is an link to the Califorina Art Club web site: http://californiaartclub.org/

The press release regarding all the new members is here: http://californiaartclub.wordpress.com/2009/01/20/congratulations-to-the-new-cac-artist-members/

LowCountry Colors, Boone Hall Plantation

LowCountry Colors, Boone Hall Plantation, 16 x 21

I painted this for my nephew's wedding back in June. We all flew to Charleston for the first marriage of this generation. The wedding reception took place at the cotton dock at Boone Hall Plantation.

While not a plein air piece, I tried to keep it consistent with my plein air approach: simplifying shapes and pushing colors toward vibrancy..thus the title.

I took about 10 photos during the reception and also stared at the colors and did a small pencil sketch that I labelled with color names to jog my memory( ie soft gold, russet , orangey green).

The three challenges I faced were: I usually avoid foregrounds, because they are hard to simplify, I don't usually paint water and there wasn't a hill in sight. Also, there was so much moisture in the air compared with California, the effect on the light was very different. I also wanted the bride and groom to like it and do a painting that they would want to keep a long time.

I am pleased with how the painting came out.

Charleston was really beautiful, we stayed on Sullivan's Island and although I didn't have my paints with me, I hope to get back there to paint.

Article on French Blog/masmoulin

Here's something I love about the blogosphere. A painter in France named Pierre de Broucker has kindly, in french, published an article about my California Plein Air paintings. The french artists ,of course, being the ones who invented plein air painting. His blog is very good and he discusses a lot of color theory from what I can understand from my 30 year old high school french. Any one who would care to translate is welcome! A link to his blog entry with illustrations is here:
http://masmoulin.blog.lemonde.fr/

Valona Paint Out

The first week of November there was a paint out in Crockett sponsored by the Epperson Gallery. It was a good thing we had a whole week because the weather switched from warm and sunny to cold and rainy a couple of times. I got to paint three of the days. I did two paintings I am happy with and one flipper. Here are the two keepers:
McEwen's Jewels 14 x 14 
Painted on McEwen Rd on the way to Port Costa on a sunny day. I presume the ranch there is McEwen's Ranch and the black cows were persistent in trying to get me to give them food. I suppose my white SUV looked like a rancher's truck. It was interesting that when I brought this painting to the gallery, I realized my interpretation of eucalyptus trees owes much to those mop- headed trees in the Dr Suess books.
Crockett Roller Coaster 11 x 8
As an experiment, I decided to try something very different, a Wayne Thiebaud inspired scene looking up at the steepest hill in town. Sort of the opposite of Valley Vertigo, looking up instead of down. It was fun to try to get the atmosphere of the light reflecting on the pavement and to push the colors but not too far. From a design standpoint I wanted to see how large the road could be and how little of the stuff around it I could include and have it still read road. It reminds me of taking the girls into San Francisco and taking them up and down the hills for thrills when they were MUCH younger.
This sold one during the reception. The exhibit lasted only two days, but there was some really fine work by Leslie Wilson ( First Prize) Tim Horn (Artists' Choice) Linda Sutton (Honorable Mention) Mamie Walters (Second Prize- I think ) Mary Lou Correia and Tara Keefe.The Epperson Gallery is done with a major remodel and looks good. It is located at 1400 Pomona Street in Crockett and the web site is http://eppersongallery.com/

A Tangled Place Watercolor

A Tangled Place 14 x14

This is a studio painting done from a plein air piece from earlier in the year. I took my tendency to tighten up in the studio and turned it into something like embroidery. I try to have your eye meander up the paths of color and tightly control the values to make the meadow shimmer and lead you to the three trees at the top. Even though it is not a mountain or hill painting, you'll notice I've kept to my favorite high horizon format.